Where Your Page Meet's Mine
by TheLionsLamb99
Summary: Edward is intuitive, assertive and a self-proclaimed hottie, but when his sister tragically dies, he is left with her most prized possession; her daughter. Migrating to Forks wasn't on his things to do list, but neither was becoming a father or having an autistic neighbour, Bella. A fence is all that separates them, but are they inclined to venture into the abyss? Full sum inside!
1. Chapter 1

**Where your page meet's mine**

**Disclaimer- ****Disclaimer: Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing.) Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

**Full Summary- Edward is intuitive, assertive and a self-proclaimed hottie, but when his sister tragically dies, he is left with her most prized possession; her daughter. Migrating to Forks wasn't on his things to do list, but neither was becoming a father or having an autistic neighbour, Bella. Bella is conscientious, sensitive and able to cast aside people's differences and appreciate their true aesthetic value. A fence is all that separates them, but are they inclined to venture into the abyss? A/H*LEMONS!**

**A/N- Hi, fellow fanfictioners! Thanks for taking the time to check out my first fanfic. It means a lot. You'll have to bear with me because, currently, this fic is unbeta'd and there's probably multiple mistakes. So, if you spot any, please tell me in a PM or a review.**

**I came up with this idea awhile back and it's been eating at my brain for months, it is lightly based off of the book 'Don't Want To Miss A Thing' by Jill Mansell and wanting to get rid of its nagging, I went ahead and wrote it all up. This is the final result. Hope you enjoy! **

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**Chapter 1:**

His movements became erratic, his cock twitching inside the sleazy but brazen women he'd bedded. Her nasal groans were piercing his ears but it was worth it. He'd needed a release all day long and he'd finally gotten it after a late shift at work with one of his co-workers. She was new and was oblivious to his preceding reputation. Her grunts grew desperate as she pleaded with him to make her cum, but he didn't care about her needs. He only worried about his own. After all, ladies knew of his ways and that all he'd set out to do was fuck, get off and then fuck _her_ off. It was the way he was. The way he'd always been. The way he always _would_ be.

He loved every aspect of his life, particularly the fucking part, but the rest he got on fine with. He worked, he fucked, he partied, he fucked some more and he had _fun._

He stiffened and with one final thrust, Edward Cullen exploded, his juices coating the white linen sheets and the underside of the women's stomach. The woman's pussy began contracting around his throbbing cock, her screams of pleasure reverberating off of the walls of his spacious bedroom, before her juices coated his now slick dick. She was a leggy blonde with reasonable sized tits and a tight as hell pussy. Just the way he liked 'em.

He collapsed, burying his head in her neck, his breathing laboured and uneven. After a few moments of silence and the regaining of their lungs, Edward rolled onto his back, his dick springing free from his rigid position.

It was almost midnight and Edward Cullen was in bed with his girlfriend as she snuggled into his bare chest, sighing in content, she mumbled against his skin, "That was amazing."

Edward just hummed in agreement. He was used to hearing those words escape women's mouths, reassuring him of his amazing skills and abilities in bed. He was, in fact, an extraordinary piece of meat and everybody knew it, including himself.

Seconds later, his phone burst into life, the bright light of the screen catching his 'girlfriends' attention. He'd forgotten her name but who cared, she was sure to be gone in the morning.

Possessed with lightning reflexes, she made a grab for his phone off of the bedside table before he could reach it himself.

Snatching it, her eyes narrowed at the sight of the name flashing across the screen, "Who's Heidi?"

A flash of jealousy flitted across her frowning face as Edward held out his hand for his phone, "Can I have my phone please?"

"Not until you tell me who she is." She blackmailed him, folding her arms across her chest and raising her breasts ever so slightly whilst doing so. Which, of course, Edward noticed.

Gulping, he waited for her to pass the phone to him, which she did with the kind of huffy annoyance that meant he _definitely_ wouldn't be seeing her again after tonight.

_Oh well, there's plenty more fish in the sea_, Edward thought as he answered the call.

"Hi Heidi, what's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, did I wake you up?"

He smiled; only Heidi could think he might be asleep before midnight. He was a predator searching for his prey, he was always awake until early hours of the morning, "Of course not. What are you calling for?"

"Oh, Edward, it's a girl!" She chimed into the phone, her voice exploding with pride.

"She's here?!" Edward exclaimed in disbelief.

"Yes, she's here and so beautiful. Seven pounds twelve ounces. She's the most amazing thing ever, wait until you see her, Eddie. She's perfect." Edwards's heart soared at these words, his smile broadening.

Filled with joy, he whispered, "She must look like me then."

Laughter filled the silence between them before Heidi said, "Yes, Eddie, she has your eyes and hair. Are you free to come down to witness our little miracle tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow? How about right now?" Edward asked, a look of disdain on his face, for which did not go unnoticed by his girlfriend as she let out a huff of annoyance at his feeble excuse to leave her. She knew what she had gotten herself into, knew he was only using her for the sex but she simply couldn't pass up an opportunity with this besotting creature. It was impossible to do so.

"Sorry, Ed, but visiting hours are ten till twelve in the morning or seven till nine in the evening. I'm sure you can wait until tomorrow, and besides, your little friend needs attending to." Heidi chuckled down the line, hearing the little huffs of irritation as she cradled her diminutive daughter in her shaking arms.

Letting out a small chuckle, he ignored her previous statement, "I'll be there and, by the way, well done you."

After ending the call, Edward laid his head back on his pillow, his disarray of unkempt hair sticking out in every direction and gazed up at the ceiling, a feeling of elation overcoming him. Wow.

"At the risk of sounding repetitive, who's Heidi?" The atmosphere surrounding the girl -Cara? Clara? Cathy?- turned distinctly frosty. "And why would her baby look like you?"

"Oh, give it a rest Cara." He muttered, rolling his eyes, "What's it mean to you?"

"First of all, it's Claire and second of all, answer me Edward, or I swear to God I will-"

Heroically, Edward didn't say, 'Who gives a flying fuck?' Because, realistically, who cared what her name was? She was just another unimportant girl to stick his dick into, which wasn't exactly lacking in the girth department if you got his gist.

"Seriously?" said Edward, "Ok, Heidi is my sister. And she's just given birth to my niece."

At around two o'clock in the morning, Edward Cullen found himself restless and unable to find sleep. He had gently retrieved his numb arm from underneath his latest conquest and slid out of his bed, throwing on some clothes and attempting to fix his disarray of hair. Fifteen minutes later, he was gazing down at the bundle of pink in his older sister's arms.

"I can't believe it." Edward murmured in wonder.

"I know, she's perfect, isn't she?" Heidi twisted her head as a slow smile spread across her face and tears gathered in her striking blue eyes.

"She's just... wow." Edward couldn't even pick out a word that described this moment. Never in his life had he felt this overwhelming joy in his life.

"I'm proud of you big sis, I truly am." Edward showed his appreciation at the niece Heidi had presented him with.

"I'm glad, it took a while to get her out though and the pain was unendurable." Heidi told him.

"But she was worth it. Look," Edward gazed down at the tiny figure of his niece as she blinked repeatedly behind her set of thick layer of feather-like lashes in the safety of her mother's arms, "She's awake."

Heidi, still filled with pride, gazed down with adoration filled eyes at the little bundle of joy in her arms. She watched as the newest addition to the family stirred and opened her eyes, transfixed on Edward.

"That's your uncle, little one." She smiled, allowing her baby to cradle her finger in her tiny hand.

"What's her name?" Edward asked a look of interest in his eyes.

"Madeline. Madeline Lillian Cullen."

Edward tore his gaze from Madeline, blinking up at Heidi with confusion in his sparkling green eyes, "Madeline? As if in our mum, Madeline?"

"Yes, I just thought she would have liked that." Heidi defended herself.

"That's great, Heidi. If she and dad were here, they'd be overjoyed." Edward whispered, bending down to place a kiss on his sister's cheek.

Heidi said, "I thought so, too.

"So how did you get in here anyway, it's past visiting hours and nearly two in the morning." Heidi asked, her interest getting the better of her.

"I told the nurse at the front desk that I was leaving for New York in three hours and wouldn't be able to see my niece for the next couple of months." Edward smiled mischievously. Edwards's legendary charm was a long-standing joke between them.

When Heidi gave him a look of disapproval, Edward had to defend himself, "It got me here, didn't it? Besides, I couldn't wait. Too excited to sleep. These are for you, by the way. Sorry they're a bit crap but it's kind of your fault."

"My fault?" Heidi said, bewildered and slightly confused as he produced masses of luridly bright orange roses, a giant Toberlone, a toy octopus and many bags of jelly worms from a plastic carrier bag. As you do.

"Yeah, you were the one who went out and had a baby in the middle of the night. My choices were limited, so I just had to work with what the shop provided for me." He explained in further detail as a flash of realisation flickered across Heidi's face.

Laughing in a carefree manor, she said, "You didn't have to do that, Edward. But thank you, they're lovely."

"Yeah, well, the least you could do is let me hold my niece after all of these jelly worms I bought for you." Edward said, holding up a bag to prove his point.

Biting her lip, Heidi snuggled her daughter close to her chest. After all, she was a first time mother; she was bound to be over protective of her daughter. She was so fragile and if Edward made a slight wrong move or dropped her, she could be gone.

Shuddering at the mere thought, she gulped and cradled her daughter even closer to her chest.

"Don't you trust me?" Edward asked, feeling less and less capable by the second. Edward had spent his life being laid-back and supremely confident; it was terrifying for him to realise that he may have a weakness.

"I trust you with my life, Edward. You know that." Heidi comforted him.

Taking a deep breath, she held out her pride and joy to him just as the baby started to wail.

Edward, feeling brave, took a chance and slid his hands beneath Madeline's tiny shoulders and gently slid her into his arms. Leaning down, he cooed, "There you go."

After a few seconds, Madeline still hadn't stopped crying and Edward let out a despaired wail, "She mustn't like me."

"She does, she's just hungry, that's all." Heidi said as she tore open a packet of jelly worms and popped one into each her and Edward's mouths.

"Oh, hey, Maddie, fancy a jelly worm?" Edward cooed down at his niece, waggling a jelly worm in her petite face.

"No, Edward, you can't give a baby a jelly worm!" Heidi exclaimed before realising he had only been joking.

Relaxing almost immediately, she laid her head back on her pillow and sighed in content as she witnessed Edward -possibly for the first time- fall in love.

"You didn't actually believe I'd give it to her, did you?" Edward asked, playfully nudging his physically drained sister with his elbow.

"Of course not, I was just playing along." Heidi shrugged nonchalantly.

"Whatever you say, _mom_."

A wave of emotion overcome Heidi as she blinked her eyelashes repeatedly, going into overdrive at her sudden realisation that she was, in fact, a mother. Someone would finally call her a 'mommy' after her much anticipated wait.

"Gosh, I'm a mom now, aren't I?" Heidi said, shock clear in her widening eyes as her heart boiled with joy and pride.

"Yes, you are, and you're going to make a great one. Believe me." Edward told his sister, a smouldering look in his piercing green eyes.

"What makes you so sure? I could be a rubbish mom. What if this is all a mistake?" Heidi hyperventilated, her pupils dilating in horror.

"To answer your first question, nobody's going to be as bad a parent as myself, and secondly, how could you think for one second that Maddie is a mistake. Mistakes are never perfect and Maddie is beautiful. I mean,_ really_ beautiful."

"You're right." Heidi admitted, her head falling in shame at her outburst, even though it was her hormones to blame.

"Of course, I'm right. I'm always right." Edward insisted, his bursting confidence was to blame for his lack of judgement.

At this specific moment, the bustling nurse who had allowed him to visit Heidi at such unearthly hours poked her head through the door.

"I'm sorry to interrupt, but you're going to have to leave now before I get into trouble." The old nurse apologised.

"Can I ask of you one last request?" Edward pleaded, jutting out his lower lip and handing Madeline back to her mother.

Sighing, the plump woman nodded her head, not being able to resist his charms.

"Take a picture of us, so I can cherish my niece whilst I'm in the big apple." He said cheerfully, feigning hurt as he retrieved his phone from his back pocket and thrust it at the nurse.

Bending down and placing his arm around Heidi's shoulder, his most charming smile gracing his face, he waited for the sound of the click before kissing each of his two favourite girls in the worlds cheeks, "Love you, girlies. See you as soon as I get back from my business trip." He winked at his sister.

"We love you too, don't we Maddie?" Heidi said, holding up her baby girl and smiling as she moved her little clenched fist in a waving gesture. The thought that Edward had already thought up a nickname for her little angel was endearing and awfully sweet for someone as laidback but obnoxious as Edward. Smirking, she called out mischievously at Edwards retreating figure, "Don't forget to bring us back something fabulous from New York!"

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**A/N- If you've read the book, you'll know that snippets of the text have been used in this fanfic. After all it is based off of it, so that's to be expected. What do you think? Reviews are greatly appreciated and constructive criticism and guest reviews are accepted. But, please, no flames. Hope you enjoyed this chapter, update soon:)**


	2. Chapter 2

**Where your page meet's mine**

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing.) Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

**A/N- Just so you guys know, there are going to be short time lapses in this fanfic, not all of the time, of course. This chapter is around four-five months after the previous chapter. Enjoy!**

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**Chapter 2:**

Bella Swan was embracing her father at the door of her home in Forks, Washington. She'd lived there since she was conceived and was stubborn when her mother talked of moving back to her hometown of Phoenix, Arizona. It was childish for someone of her age to act in such a manner, but it surely wasn't her intent to prevent her mother's dreams from becoming a reality. It was a simply a matter that she wouldn't be able to handle such a drastic change in lifestyle.

"You smell of fish." Bella complained, turning her nose up at the putrid smell emitting from her father. "Did you know that most brands of lipstick contain fish scales?"

Laughing quietly at her remark, Charlie replied, "Remind me to refrain from kissing you on the lips when you're wearing lipstick."

Her head tilted to the side as she thought over what he'd just said, her brow furrowing in the most adorable of ways. "I don't think-"

"Don't strain yourself, darling." Charlie interjected, smoothing out the formed creases on her forehead with his thumb. She smiled up at him impishly and he forced a smile in return, supressing his emotions until he could curl up in his bed later on and cry about his daughter's bad start in life. He knew that she could amount and achieve a lot of things in her life, she was intellectual. She knew things others of her age had no idea of.

She'd always had Asperger's syndrome. It was a constant factor that she'd gotten used to over the years. At times, it was unimaginably hard, but she'd always overcome it, no matter where her life took her, which was sort of comical since she often wandered off without her own assent. It always frightened her parents when she did this, but she had no control over it, and it never failed to make her anxiety rise because she'd want to understand why her mother was crying at the customer services desk in the nearest grocery store, or shaking with fear as she looked down at her side and realised her daughter was nowhere in sight.

He gently tugged on her hand, gripping it tightly in his and watched as she examined their intertwined fingers. Bella was used to Charlie's constant absence. Her parents had divorced a few years prior to her newfound engagement in artwork. She'd drew ever since she could recall, and without bragging, she was rather talented. Hand her a sketch book and a pencil and she'd be in her element for hours on end, a mass of vibrant colours of papers stacked before her as she pencilled away her latest project.

"Is everything alright?" Charlie asked, stepping back to gaze down at his beautiful chocolate-eyed daughter.

Bella nodded her head enthusiastically, but her face contorted back to its normal mask of indifference after a few moments. Charlie sighed and leaned down, pressing a gentle kiss to his daughter's temple. Shockingly, she threw her arms around his neck, squeezing him with all of her might. He chuckled at his little girl's fervour and planted multiple kisses all over her now mussed hair.

"Charlie?" Came Renee, Bella's mother's, voice from behind the two reunited father and daughter. Charlie's eyes strained against the dim light, which he dare not comment on since he knew Bella would overreact due to the sudden changing in lighting, and quickly made out the shape of his ex-wife.

"Oh, hi, Renee. How are things?" He asked awkwardly, scratching the nape of his neck with his long fingered hands as a blush tinged his cheeks a light shade of pink. Renee always thought it was adorable and was glad that Bella had inherited it from her father.

Renee nodded her head in assent of his words, tightening her robe before running a hand through her hair. "What are you doing here? It's almost two in the morning." Renee scolded him.

Charlie stuttered out a sorry, cleared his throat and continued, his words punctuated with guilt, "I've just returned from my fishing trip and wanted to see Bella. It's hard for me to be away from her and I get scared, Renee. She's my baby girl, too. I have the right to see her."

"And I don't deprive you of that right. But she's just as much mine as she is yours and, right now, it's past her bedtime." Renee shot back at him. Bella never failed to notice the acid in her mom's voice and rolled her eyes. They always argued. And she was always the foundation of that argument.

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The following morning, Renee walked into her daughter's room at seven-thirty prompt. She admired her daughter's beauty as she muttered some unintelligible words in her sleep. The way her curls of brunette hair splayed out over pink princess pillowcase, which she'd had since she was a child, and the way her thick layer of lashes curved upwards at the tips. Her lips were plump and a colour as dark as blood, complementing her pallid complexion.

She hated to wake her daughter when she looked so peaceful, but it was necessary if she wanted her to _not_ have a mental breakdown due to the corruption of her schedule. Although it was highly frustrating to wake up so early with no intent on doing anything but laze around her home, Renee never did blame her daughter. It was a factor of Asperger's syndrome she had to accept.

Before bending down besides Bella's bed, Renee noticed the small gathering of sheets on Bella's dressing table. She quickly retrieved them and scanned them, examining the creations intently. It was a morning ritual to look over her daughter's artwork. She wasn't snooping, she was simply trying to figure out the emotions her daughter was trying to express through her work.

What she found there surprised her to no end.

The detailed drawing of an angel sitting in the corner of a dark room didn't scare Renee. What scared her was the fact that the angel was crying, her naked and bruised body was a constant reminder that her daughter was a tortured soul, a consistent worry in the forefront of her mind.

Tears pooled in her eyes and she quickly flipped over to the next picture, near choking at the sight before her. The pictures dropped to the floor and Renee let out an agonised sob of despair, her hands flying to her lips to sojourn her now muffled, broken cries.

The picture lay upturned and the view was even more distinct than before. She rearranged her facial expression and wiped away her tears, placing the drawings in a neat pile on her dresser.

"Bella, honey, wake up." She said gently, shaking Bella's shoulder. Bella's eyes opened slowly and she stretched her arms above her head, yawning.

"Good morning, mom." She smiled, throwing back her covers and climbing out of her bed.

Renee nodded her head, too frightened that her hoarse voice would give away her heartbreak, and kissed her daughter's cheek, smoothing out her haystack of hair.

The remainder of the morning was spent with Bella intent on watching the discovery channel. Her morning ritual of coffee in on hand and her best –and one of not so many- friend perched beside her on the couch.

"Your mom says the house next door is back on the market. Any takers yet?" Alice queried, popping a strawberry lace into her little mouth. She chew thoughtfully for a second, watching as Bella made no move to acknowledge her words. Instead, Bella took a sip of her coffee and leaned forward wistfully in her seat, her head inclined towards the television.

After another hour of the consistent and dull voice of the narrator of the documentary droning on about different species of animals and spouting interesting facts about them in each and every direction, Alice dare mentioned the fact that Bella was fifteen minutes late for work. For which Bella went into frantic overdrive about.

She was panting when she climbed into Alice's car, her eyes as wide as a deer caught in headlights. In her haste, she had forgotten to fasten her seatbelt and leant her elbows on the dashboard as she bit down on her nails, shaking uncontrollably.

She thanked Alice for dropping her off before entering the café. She was a barista and never failed to quench the customers every want and need.

"Hey, Bells." Jacob, her colleague, smiled at her, dusting his hands off on his black apron.

She smiled at him in return and clocked herself in, throwing on her apron before helping Jacob with a persistent and complaining customer.

"I asked for a Frappuccino with whipped cream, caramel sauce, extra ice and a sprinkle of cocoa powder. Instead, I got it with a small amount of ice and chocolate sauce. This is _not _what I asked for, so would you be as kind as to remake my order?" The woman fumed, placing her hand over her baby's chest to calm her down as she whimpered in her carrier. The baby was just as beautiful as the woman who bore her. Copper curls framed her face and her astounding green eyes were profound and tantalizing to gaze into.

Bella pushed Jacob's fumbling hands aside and looked at the assortment Jacob had put together. To be honest, it was not the best Frappuccino she'd seen and she'd seen many.

She had been working for the company for three years and had been through more employees than she could remember. The boss, Rosalie, was extremely picky, but when she had met Bella, something had clicked and they'd hit it off immediately.

Now, Rosalie shot Jacob a stern look from the bar stool she was seated at, and licked the pad of her finger before flicking to the next page of her magazine, her eyes still trained on Jacob as he awkwardly ruffled his hair.

"Here you go, ma'am." Bella smiled coyly, placing the cup on the counter and folding her arms behind her back, rocking on her heels. The woman raised an eyebrow at her and sat down on the stool beside the serving desk.

Rosalie couldn't tear her eyes off of the baby beside the woman. Tears filled her eyes and she hastily clawed at them, hiding the proof of her need for a child of her own. She'd given birth to a baby boy a couple of years back, but the baby was stillborn. It was a daunting experience for a wannabe mother.

"Your daughter is beautiful," Rosalie complimented the woman, smiling down at the gurgling baby, "What's her name?"

The woman took a sip of her Frappuccino, smiling with pride and joy at her little one, "Madeline. Madeline Lillian Cullen."

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**A/N- Chapter 3 has already been written, but the next update depends on the amount of reviews I receive. Tomorrow? Next week? You decide...**


	3. Chapter 3

**Where your page meets mine**

**Disclaimer: Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing.) Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

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**Chapter 3:**

Edward Cullen was dishing out servings of various store-bought delicacies. It was quite obvious he hadn't produced them –he may have been good in the sack, but he was terrible when it came to kitchen appliances and usually depended on his usual takeout menus to cater for him- but he knew his sister would appreciate his generosity despite his lack of craftsmanship.

It was Heidi's birthday and for some unknown reason, she'd jetted off to Forks with Madeline to run some last minute errands. He'd called her just moments before, getting antsy about not see his niece for almost a week. Apparently, she was in some coffee shop.

"Well, when are you getting home?" Edward had enquired, his irritation evident. Heidi didn't know of the surprise party he'd threw for her and he didn't have a clue how long she'd be at Forks. His series of worries extended as he realised she could be unpunctual and the guests may have already departed by the time she arrived home.

Sighing, Heidi replied, "I'll be home as soon as I can, Edward. Maddie's been pining for you."

"Haven't you?" He smirked, a smile taking form on his lips as a girl checked him out from across the room.

Whilst he smiled seductively at the girl, Heidi replied, "Of course I miss you, you're my baby brother. No matter how annoying you are at times, there's nothing I can do to change that, despite my attempts."

"Love you, sis."

"Love you too, bro."

After hanging up, the girl benignly approached him and rested her hand on his forearm, she said, "You must be Edward."

"Why, yes I am. See something you like?" He smirked enticingly, seeing her reaction to him was fantastic.

Her green eyes widened in disbelief and she stuttered out a, "Umm, yes. How about you?"

"I like a lot of things, but I've got my eyes on a specific beauty." His eyes twinkled with mischief as he waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"And who might that be?" Her confidence was now mounting as she smirked up at him through her long set of fake eyelashes, far too elongated for his liking, but her boobs were fantastic.

"Whatever your name is, sweetheart."

"Really? Well, in that case, my name is Victoria." She stuck out her hand to him; he took it firmly into his strong grasp and pressed a delicate kiss to the back of her hand.

"Pleasure to meet you, I'm sure. May I ask how you know me?"

"It's not so much _you_ I know, but your name." When Edward tilted his head to one side, a look of bewilderment in his sparkling eyes, Victoria persisted, "You see, my friend had a thing with you, but you blew her off. She told me of her plan to find someone to seduce you and then blow _you_ off, like you did to her, but she needed someone to help her. So, I decided to intervene and now I'm here, on my 'bosses' instructions."

Her sarcastic remark had Edward's smile broaden and just as he opened his mouth to speak, he felt the vibrating of his phone in his back pocket.

He held up one finger to silence her and retrieved his phone. With his free hand, he covered his other ear. The music was deafening, it felt as if it were being injected directly into his brain, making it pound painfully.

"Hello?" Edward said cheerfully down the receiver, "Is that you, Heidi?"

* * *

What was he doing here? He vaguely remembered collapsing at some point and waking up in his bed. Something had propelled him to come to the coffee shop in Forks and it certainly wasn't for his morning fix of coffee. It was because this was the former place she'd been situated with Maddie. The only place he wanted to be at this moment in time.

"Did you want something, sir?" A young woman asked him, popping her bubble gum absentmindedly. The fact that she wasn't wearing a uniform confused Edward, but he gave up contemplating why after a few moments of her gawking at him.

"No," He muttered, slouching back further in his seat, "Sit down."

The young woman's eyes near bugged out of her head, but she obliged, too tired to give a damn.

"Is something the matter?" She asked bravely, fiddling with her fingers underneath the secluded booths table.

"Have you ever lost someone you love and wanted one more conversation, one more chance to make up for the wrongs you inflicted upon them? Have you ever felt dead inside? Like, now that they're gone, you're lost without their guidance?" Edward breathed out fretfully.

"I'm Alice." She said hastily, intrigued by the man before her.

"Edward."

She stuck out her hand to him, but he didn't acknowledge it and chose to sit in a deafening silence instead, "Is there someone you'd like me to call for you?"

He shook his head, "My friend is on his way from Seattle."

"I'm guessing you've just broken up with your girlfriend." Alice said, shooting him a regretful glance.

Edward chuckled half-heartedly, "I wish."

"Wife?"

"Nope." He said, popping the 'p'.

"Boyfriend?"

"I'm not gay."

"Then what's happened to make you so downright upset?" Alice questioned, leaning forward in anticipation of his tantalizing words.

"My sister." Edward supressed his tears, his word's muffled by his hand.

Alice blinked, speechless and her heart wrenched for the man, "Oh."

Edward chuckled sombrely, "And do you know what makes the whole thing 'better'?"

Alice shook her head, dumbfounded. "She's just had a baby."

"I'm so sorry for your loss." Alice quivered, her bare arms enveloping in goose bumps. Her feeling of contrite for the poor man before her was profound and she couldn't help the tears that pricked her eyes for such a drastic change of events in his life.

"There's more." He added darkly just as a pair of headlights brightened the empty cafés window. He hastily scooped up his drenched jacket and threw it over his arm, near sprinting for the door.

"Wait," Alice called out for the inauspicious man, wanting and _needing _to hear the ending of this poor man's life story.

He stopped in his tracks and the driver's door was peeled open.

"Thanks for doing this, Jaz." Edward said, a look of sincerity and deflation on his face.

Jasper's eyes fell on the girl in the doorway of the lifeless café and his breath hitched. For it wasn't just a 'girl', it was more like a goddess. The short and petite girl was nothing of a plain complexion. Her perfectly styled black hair was spiked in every direction and her porcelain face was nothing short of stunning.

The way the headlights danced across her skin did amazing things to Jasper's body, and for some strange reason Jasper suddenly became extremely nervous.

He cleared his blocked throat, feeling uneasy all of a sudden. He didn't know why, but there was something about this girl. He wanted her. He wanted her like he'd never wanted another woman before.

She gingerly stepped forward, which was out of character for Alice; she was never this bashful.

"Hi, err, I'm Alice." She said, her delicious and bubbly voice coaxing him to extend his hand to her. She took it firmly in her diminutive hands and didn't make a move to let go.

"J-Jasper. I mean…" He gulped, his Adams apple bobbing as he did so, "My _name_ is Jasper."

"It's nice to make your acquaintance." Alice smirked, dropping his hand suddenly. There was one word for the way this hunky piece of man was staring at her; awestruck, and she loved the way it was making her feel about herself.

"The pleasure is most definitely all mine." Jasper stated, raking a hand through his soft honey curls. Alice giggled despite herself and Jasper smiled at his accomplishment.

Throughout the whole meetings and greetings, Edward sat oblivious on the sidewalk. He was too caught up in his thoughts to give a damn what was going on. One thought ran rampant in his hectic mind and it stuck out like a gaping sore on the landscape.

How would he nurse and nurture a baby?

"Let's go." Edward mumbled, peeling himself off of the sidewalk and striding to the other side of Jasper's car.

"Well, it was nice meeting you." Alice smiled, rocking on the back of her heels slowly.

"Likewise." Jasper smirked. Each of them stood staring at each other for a minute until Edward decided he'd had enough and beeped the horn.

A rustle of cutlery in the cafés kitchen made Jasper freeze and Alice turn on the spot.

"Is everything alright, Bella?" Alice called out, cupping her hands around her mouth to propel her voice to Bella who was locking up in the back.

"Everything's fine!" She bellowed back and the rustling sound continued.

Alice rolled her eyes and turned back to Jasper, suddenly remembering something as Jasper climbed into his car and bolted the door shut, peeling down the window.

"Bella, get your butt out here!" Alice hollered and a few seconds later, Bella submerged, panting heavily.

Alice grabbed the pen tucked behind Bella's ear and seized Jasper's hand.

Jasper looked down at what she was writing, muddled, but smiled when he saw that she'd wrote her phone number there.

She handed Bella her pen back and smirked at Jasper sweetly, "I'll call you." He vowed and Alice's heart soared.

Just as the car peeled out of the car park, Bella caught sight of the passenger and squinted against the dim light, frowning when she couldn't see who it was.

Alice suddenly wafted her hands at the retreating vehicle, yelling at the top of her lungs, "Tell the father that I wish him luck with the baby."

And then they were gone.

* * *

**A/N- For those of you who aren't liking this 'manwhore' side of Edward, its been planned for a while and you will see why in future chapters. If you are so inclined, leave me a review telling me your likes and dislikes so far:)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Where your page meets mine**

**Disclaimer- Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing). Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

**A/N- For those of you wondering about my updating schedule, there's usually an update during the weekend, but you must understand that this is not always possible. So, please bear with me and know that I don't leave my fanfics unfinished ;)**

* * *

**Chapter 4:**

Bella could not fathom why Alice was inseparable from her mobile phone all of a sudden. Sure, she'd gotten a date, but did she have to be constantly overjoyed when her screen flashed with a text message or a call, for which was usually her mother? Talk about desperate.

It was sort of comical really, but Alice disagreed entirely. She'd been polite, flirty and acted mature-ish, and he didn't even have the decency to tell her that she was wasting her time on a hunk of meat like him. Alice would always say how unfair it was, but stopped complaining when Bella continued to proclaim that 'life was unfair' whenever Alice felt the need to announce it.

It had been a little over a week since their first meeting, and Alice was still hung up on a phone call that wasn't coming anytime soon.

"Hey, Alice?"

"Yes, Bella." Alice said absentmindedly. She was lazing across Bella's bed, leaving Bella to sit cross-legged on her desk chair. It was mildly uncomfortable but Bella didn't complain.

"I was just wondering," Bella contemplated her choice of words, "did Jasper ever get around to calling you?"

Alice sighed, shooting a scowl in Bella's general direction, "No. Why do men always chase women they have no intention of pursuing a relationship with?" Her monotonous voice made Bella's eyebrows knit together at the crease of her forehead, her chocolate eyes filled with worry for her friend's well-being.

Bella stared at her friend for a few seconds, waiting for her to advance on her little tirade, but upon staring bleakly at the ceiling, Bella was quick to reply, "The same urges that make dogs chase cars they have no intention of driving, but I'm sure he'll get around to it eventually." Bella placated her friend, reaching over to pat the creamy skin of her hand soothingly.

Alice giggled softly; Bella always spouted a loud of crap, but she knew how to lighten the mood, for which Alice would be forever grateful for when she felt down.

Alice didn't advance on her friends comment; instead she uncooperatively peeled herself from the bed and slid on her shoes.

"Ready?" She enquired, adjusting her spiky do in the lengthy mirror placed against Bella's wall.

Bella nodded her head, leaping up to her feet before traipsing down the stairs alongside Alice. For some odd reason, Bella was strangely ecstatic.

The drive to the café was fairly quiet, the windows were rolled down and, for once in their inconsequential drizzly hometown of Forks, it was astonishingly sun-drenched.

"Thanks for doing this, Alice. It means a lot to me." Bella smiled appreciatively at Alice who just bobbed her head once, not bothering to meet her gaze. The truck was idling on the curb outside the café, and Alice was facing forward, not bothering to acknowledge Bella's praise.

Sighing, Bella forcefully shut the car door, swinging around to quickly dash into the café.

The door jingled as she opened it and Rosalie turned in her usual spot to stare inquisitively at Bella.

"Bella, its Friday. It's supposed to be your day off." Rosalie heaved a sigh, spinning around on one of the swivel stools scattered around the breakfast bar, shaking her head at Bella's blushing form.

"Sorry, Rose. I forgot my purse. What brought you here?"

"Interview." Was her reply.

"Right, I'll see you tomorrow." Bella said, grinning at Rose before retiring to the back of the shop, where employees clocked in and left their belongings.

Rosalie just nodded her head and continued to glare at the two cantankerous men in the corner booth, both intimidating her impending customers.

Once Bella had located her ancient purse, she proceeded to the main entrance of the café, throwing a quick wave over her shoulder for Rosalie's sake. But upon turning herself back around, she collided with a solid chest.

Mentally dazed, she stumbled backwards and would have fell on her butt if it weren't for the iron grip the stranger had on her waist. "Sorry." She unintelligibly mumbled, mentally scolding herself for not paying any attention.

"Don't apologise, it was completely my fault." The stranger apologised and Bella couldn't help but look up at the man that owned such a dulcet tone.

Bella, unable to form coherent words, walked straight passed the new arrival. His eyes may have had dark purple shadows underneath them, but they had an entirely captivating dimension to them. His hair was a chaotic mess perched on top of his perfectly sculpted head, and he was lean and lanky and utterly dishevelled looking. His eyes gave away his hollowness, his tendency to be withdrawn and incapable -although, his perfectly ironed suit was strict evidence against that. If this specimen could transfix Bella by merely bumping into her, she couldn't imagine what else he could do to her.

* * *

"Last question, I promise." The blonde bombshell told him, placing the tip of her pen on the notepad she carried.

"Shoot." Edward said, leaning back attentively. The brunette in the doorway with the fiery eyes was poignant in his thoughts. She'd been a tad of a mystery, and Edward was usually good at reading girls. He knew what turned them on, what didn't, how to approach them… but with this one, nothing. It was highly frustrating and he found it near impossible to deal with.

"Is there a reason that you would like this job?"

Edward's thoughts came to a halt as he thought over her question. Of course, there was a reason he wanted this particular job. He could have any job he wanted, but this job had a tie to him like no other. "Yes actually, there is."

When he didn't proceed, the blonde gestured for him to continue, "My sister died here a couple of weeks ago. A brain haemorrhage they say. Since it was the last location she was alive at, I wanted to see what propelled her to come here. She doesn't even live in the area."

"Do you?"

"I thought you said no more interrogating?" Edward chuckled, but continued upon receiving a stern glare, "I just outright bought a house in the area."

The blonde scribbled down a few last words before rising to her feet, "It was a pleasure meeting you Mr Cullen. I'll be sure to contact you soon'"

"Likewise." He grinned, shaking her hand formally before retreating to his car.

In the mist of his mourning, Edward had reminisced about his and Heidi's childhood. They'd been adopted after their parents had died by a couple who were unable to conceive a baby, they'd referred to adopting and there had been an instant connection between the four. Carlisle and Esme were sweet, erratic and caring parents to Edward and Heidi. They'd do anything for the two of them, and upon returning to Forks to visit his adoptive parents; Edward had recollected the house that Heidi had pointed out shortly after the birth of Madeline. It was a marvellous three bedroom house not too far from his parents' home. If he went through with the adoption, he'd have his parent's guidance through the phases of fatherhood.

The news of the adoption had only just come his way and he was still undecided, but he knew that nobody else would have this baby barring himself. Carlisle was a top doctor at the local hospital and Esme was a top of the notch interior designer with a fetish for potentially dangerous ornaments dotted around her living space. Their house may have been astounding and all, but it was certainly not baby proof and who was to say that they'd be able to care for a baby more than Edward? Edward and Heidi had already elapsed their baby years when they were adopted, so they had just as much experience as Edward had –no pun intended.

With a blood curdling screech of the tires skidding across the road, Edward was brought out of his revelry and quickly expelled his looming dejection.

At the moment, he was on his way to view the house that Heidi had felt so inclined to pay a deposit towards on the day of her death. He'd seen it many of times, but only a couple of days ago did he decide to take that leap in life and purchase the house that had his sister's full attention.

The previous occupant had died a couple of years prior and it'd been on the market ever since. There was nothing faulty about it; no hauntings, loose pipes or a squeaky boiler. The price range was just a little out of everyone's league and, to be honest, Forks wasn't exactly appealing but it was a decent place to bring up a child.

The thought of little Madeline with some unfamiliar foster carers was painful for Edward to imagine, but in the end it helped enlighten his decision.

Either _he_ had the baby or a faceless strange would, but which one was the rightful path his future determined?

He was lodged in a limbo of despair and anxiety, knowing that his decision could ignite the spark that was needed to for him to enter 'heaven' or send him to his own personal fiery pit of 'hell'.

* * *

**A/N- I'm not overly pleased with the ending of this chapter. It's a little dramatic, right? Anyhow, leave me a few words of wisdom ;)**


	5. Chapter 5

**Where your page meets mine**

**Disclaimer- Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing). Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

**A/N- Okay, somebody mentioned the father of Maddie. I'll not gonna be spilling any beans, so you'll just have to wait and see;)**

* * *

**Chapter 5:**

Bella was lounging in the back garden under a sea-parasol, which was barely used and washed out from the constant rain. With a book in hand, she pursed her lips and licked the pad of her finger, flicking to the next page.

Renee was sat on the ground at her feet, rooting up the weeds and replanting varieties of vibrant flowers, all of which were blossomed and crisp.

The sun, once again, was hanging above their heads, but they knew their good fortune wouldn't last too long. It would have to rain in the next couple of days. Their fears were confirmed when, Phil, Renee's recent boyfriend had called it out from his spot in the lounge.

"I met our new neighbour today, Bells." Renee informed Bella. Bella hummed her assent with unconcealed disregard. Her mother, always the gossip, made no attempt to hide her smugness when it came to men. She'd been searching for years for the right man for Bella, that's when she'd met Phil. Twenty-year old Bella Swan did nothing to hide her disdain at her mother having found another man to replace her father. It pained Bella to see them together, but Phil was nice enough. "He's a real catch, you know."

"Is he really?" Bella mumbled, too entranced by her book. Sometimes, she wished she could just climb inside her book and live there. Even though the book she was currently reading was a non-fiction type.

"For goodness sakes, Bella," Renee droned in exasperation. She swivelled around on the spot, still crouched down, and threw her hands up to emphasise her vexation. "At least help me out when I'm only trying to do you a favour."

"You do remember what happened last time, don't you? I'm. Not. Interested. Go find someone else to prattle on to." Bella waved her hands in frustration and snatched her phone off of the garden table, placing her earphones in whilst sending a smirk in Renee's general direction, for which Renee huffed at and continued to stare at her daughter with slanted eyes.

Bella, sensing Renee's consistent scowling, leapt to her feet and began prancing about on the deck chair. Renee turned her back just as Bella noticed something over the fence by her mother.

The goddess of a man from the café a couple of weeks ago was leaning up to retrieve a pair of extra tight boxer briefs from his clothesline. Bella's intake of breath was loud and Renee dusted off her hands as she pulled herself to her feet with a groan. Being her usual nosey self, she peered over the fence and was met by an astonishing shade of green eyes.

"Oh, hey their Edward." Renee smirked. Maybe now Bella would be interested in Edward enough to make it an official date.

"Hi Renee. This must be the daughter you were telling me about. Bella, right?" His eyes shot to Bella for a moment, raking in the frozen girl mid-step on her deck chair. Bella's eyes widened in shock and she hastily nodded her head; speechless for once. Why in the world was her mother talking about her behind her back? She was dreading what Renee had told him about her. It was sure to be embarrassing.

"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you I'm sure." Edward cooed. Bella gulped, still unable to form coherent words and yanked out her blaring headphones.

"Well, I'm going to head on inside to start dinner." Renee said, raising an eyebrow at Bella with a knowing smirk.

Once Renee had disappeared, Edward decided to ask what had been playing on his mind for so long, "Say, haven't I seen you around here somewhere? The café or something? Weren't you the girl who knocked into me?"

Bella nodded her head awkwardly, rubbing the nape of her neck.

"It's okay. Renee tells me you got a job there." He said, sensing her discomfort. Renee had also told him of Bella's Asperger's syndrome.

"Yes, I've been working there since I was seventeen. My friend, Rosalie, owns the place." Bella notified him. Her soft and warm voice was soothing to his ears; it was almost like a child's nervous talk, but somehow more intriguing and genuine.

"So that's the blonde bombshells name." Edward mumbled under his breath.

"Excuse me?"

"Oh, nothing. I tend to talk to myself sometimes." Edward shrugged, brushing it off.

"No kidding, I do exactly the same thing. Although, mines sort of a… package deal, I suppose you could call it." Bella grinned from ear to ear. Now, that he'd got her started, he knew it would be hard to get her to stop. He smiled to himself, pleased by his findings. The girl was different from any other women he'd met, she was smart and sincere, unlike the others who were nasty and slutty; they basically threw themselves at him. Although he was unable to resist their 'charms'.

Edward just smiled at her reassuringly and held up his boxers, "Well, I best go put these on. It may be sunny, but it's awful chilly in just a towel and dripping wet hair."

For the first time, Bella's eyes scanned his torso. Little droplets of water were falling from his chaotic hair and down his sleek skin, leaving a sort of snail trail in its wake. The white towel hung loosely around his hips, grazing just below his knees, and a small peak of his V was on show. Bella felt her knees go weak underneath her and she fought for control over her hammering heart rate.

_Damn, my mother sure know's how to catch them!__  
_

Before she could voice her thoughts, he turned on his bare heel and threw a wave over his shoulder as he went to enter his house.

"Oh, and Edward?" Bella called out, suddenly remembering something vital.

"Yes?" Edward said, bewildered.

"You shouldn't wear tight boxer briefs, you know. Your scrotum stores the sperm there and automatically controls the temperatures. When you're wearing tight boxers, it defeats the purpose and can make your testicles overheat. It could reduce the amount of sperm and testosterone production. Of course, if you're trying for a baby, this means a lot." Bella babbled, unaware of Edward's raised eyebrow and lopsided grin.

"Well, I'm not exactly trying for a baby am I? Not when I've got Madeline." Edward said, his face falling ever so slightly. He loved Maddie, but to think of all of the restless nights and diaper changes gave him a headache and made him feel sleepy all of a sudden.

For a moment, he thought back to the old woman that had interviewed him a few weeks ago. She'd surveyed his house and interrogated him and even asked about his occupation. He'd quit his previous job after moving to Forks –he wouldn't have much time for work now, a smaller job would suffice for now though- and had gotten a phone call prior to his interview in the café informing him that he'd received the job a couple of days ago. He was to start working in a week's time.

"True," Bella shrugged, her eyes lost in thought. She thought it was a very noble thing to do, caring for a baby that wasn't yours. He loved Madeline; you could see it in his eyes when he spoke of her. Although, she'd never met her for herself –only a small glimpse of her in the café- Bella imagined the little girl to look like Edward, Heidi had when she'd seen her in the café. It would be especially tough considering his sister's death was the reason he had little Maddie.

Sighing, Bella grabbed her book and phone off of the table, before sprinting off into her bedroom; when the inspiration for something to draw stroke, there was no stopping it.

* * *

"I'm sorry, man. Truly, I am." Edward apologised, raking a hand through his hair in defeat.

"I don't understand why you're doing this, Edward."

"I don't see what's so hard to understand. I'm about to become a father, don't you _realise_ how hard this is going to be for me?"

"I _realise_ how extravagant you are." Jasper said monotonously, his voice dripping with mockery.

"Extravagant? Just because I want to be closer to my parents for a little support and advice, that means I'm extravagant?" Edward fumed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb, his breathing laboured as he tried to control his burning rage. Jasper had no idea what he was going through right now, and when he came crawling back for mercy, Edward would not prevail.

"Yes… No. I don't know, Edward. But I do know that you've got to get your head back into gear and your ass back to work. Boss is eating my ass for your shit."

"I don't care about some shithead. I'm focusing all my attention on Maddie right now."

A sigh sounded down the receiver and Edward rubbed his eyes, exhausted. The stress and anxiety had caught up with him as of late and, to be entirely honest, he couldn't deal with Jaspers shit right now. He already had enough to deal with.

"Listen, Jaz. I've got to go, man. I'll speak to you soon." The line went dead before he had the chance to finish and he threw his head back against the back of the couch, just as the door sounded.

He grunted as he climbed to his feet, padding to the small and secrete hallway before yanking open the door, "What the-"

"Sorry to bother you, but could you give me lift to the local supermarket. Bella's gone missing and I don't drive. Phil offered to go the supermarket with her earlier because she ran out of art books, and he called a few minutes ago saying she'd walked off. He's new to all of this; he didn't know what to do." Renee was snivelling on his front porch, mascara stains sliding down her freckled cheeks.

"Let me just get my keys and jacket." Edward was already walking off into the house, panic setting in.


	6. Chapter 6

**Where your page meets mine**

**Disclaimer- Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing). Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

* * *

**Chapter 6:**

Bella smiled at the women sat behind the counter besides the exit as she absconded. The women with blonde hair smiled pleasantly in return and waved a small perfectly manicured hand in greeting.

The glass doors slid open as she emerged, a cool breeze made her shiver and grasp at the scarce jacket hanging loosely open. The night sky was settling above her, the clouds preventing her from admiring the stars. As she walked across the threshold of the nearby park, she spotted a young man laying sprawled out on a rusty, blue, bench just across from her.

She shrugged off her impending worry when she realised that he was snoring lightly and proceeded to tiptoe over to the gently swaying swings, which made a slight whistling noise as the breeze propelled them forwards. With a small smile on her lips and her cheeks tinged a rosy red, she plopped herself on the swing and pushed gently off of the spongy floor, gaining speed. In her peripheral vision, she noticed the man slowly guiding himself upright and abruptly stopped swinging, but the swing continued to make a rustling noise for which she frowned slightly at.

"What's a little lady like you doing on the streets?" The man called over to her, rubbing his eyes tiredly. For the first time, Bella noticed the small flask of alcohol grasped tightly in one of the man's huge hands. She gulped and the man's eyes zeroed in on the girls frightened eyes, like a deer caught in headlights.

Bella didn't say anything, she just stared, dumbfounded, at the man before her. She quickly swiped at her dripping nose and stuffed her hands deep into her pockets.

"A little shy for a girl from our generation." He observed, slowly peeling his head off of the park bench and cocking his head to one side, admiring the young beauty. "Say, what's your name?"

"B-Bella." She gulped, suddenly remembering her mom's persistent words; never talk to strangers.

"Well, Bella, I guess you're wondering what I'm doing here on a park bench at this late hour."

Bella nodded her head numbly. As terrified as she was, she was most definitely intrigued.

"Well, you see, I've been with my girl for six years now. We met at college and she was a hit with the men. We were thrown together in a late study night in the library and there was an instant connection. Yeah, I know how cheesy that sounds, but it's the absolute truth. Well, as of late, she's been… throwing herself out there, I guess you could say." He paused for a moment, taking a swig of his drink, "Found her in bed with another man when I got home from work tonight. I'm devastated."

Bella continued to survey the man, and for the first time, she noticed specs of dried blood dripping from his nose, a black eyes and cheek and blood oozing from a gash on his forehead.

The streetlights flickered on after a moment and once she could see the depth of the gash, she gasped and scrambled off of the swing and towards him.

"We need to get that forehead of yours checked out, sir. I don't suppose you've got some loose cash for a cab, do you?" Bella said, crouched down at the man's feet. His face was swollen and distorted, but his eyes were the most excruciating to witness. They were so heavy and lifeless. He rummaged around in his pocket for a few seconds before handing her a twenty dollar bill.

She slowly helped the man up to his feet and hesitantly wrapped an arm around his burly middle, helping him limp his was down the winding path until they reached the sidewalk and hailed a cab.

* * *

Renee was balling like a baby, Phil was trying to console her and blaming himself for Bella's disappearance and Edward was pacing before them, trying to gather where in the world this girl he barely knew was.

He'd already searched the café, made the supermarket they were currently situated in call it out over the tannoy, knocked at Rosalie's apartment -after getting directions from Renee- and phoned his parents to announce the misfortunate news to them. Of course, being in a rush and all, Edward had forgotten his phone and had to borrow Renee's who was more than willing to oblige.

"My little b-baby girl." Renee blubbered besides him. He may not be able to sympathise with Renee, but he sure as hell could grasp why she was so upset. If anything ever happened to his little Maddie he'd be in pieces.

"It's going to be alright, Renee." Phil comforted her, his head resting lightly on her shaking shoulders.

The phone, still clutched tightly in his hands, began vibrating, and within seconds it was against his ear as he spoke violently down the receiver, "Hello? Bella, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me. What are you doing on my mothers...? Never mind. Listen, I'm at the hospital, do you mind coming to pick me up? My mom would have a fit if she finds out I left Phil." Bella's soothing voice cooed down the receiver.

"Your mother is here with me now and-… Wait. Did you just say you're at the hospital?" Edwards voice broke at the word 'hospital' and he shakily raked a hand through his matted hair. Renee let out a strangled cry at his words and buried her face in Phil's drenched chest, clutching onto fistfuls of his shirt.

"Yes, Edward, listen!" Bella called, but the line had already gone dead and she was brought out of her thoughts by the man emerging from one of the wards.

"Is everything alright now?" She asked him, meeting him at the elevator.

"Everything's fine, Bella. I told you it would be."

Bella scowled at him for a moment before shaking her head, "My neighbour is coming to pick us up within the next few minutes. Did you need a ride somewhere?"

He scoffed lightly and shook his head, "Remember? I just dumped my 'lifelong' girlfriend after pummelling the man I found her in bed with. I'm basically homeless." A single tear dripped down from his face as the elevator doors gradually closed.

She didn't make a move to wipe it away, she just stared at him, disbelieving. Never had she seen a man cry before.

The elevator ride dragged, what with so many floors to pass and the most ancient elevator of them all to ride in, but Bella was grateful; the man was still trying to conceal his tears with a hard mask in place.

"Bella!" Came Edward's frantic voice from the opposite side of the room once the doors had very sluggishly opened. Turning her head, she spotted Edward weaving through the lined chairs and small throngs of people. "Are you okay? Are you hurt? What happened?"

Bella gulped and gestured to the man who was currently signing a few slips of paper for the hospital, "If you would have allowed me to continue, you would have found out that I wasn't the injured one. I was helping a friend."

The man's head span in her direction and he smiled appreciatively at her, amazed by her generosity; she considered him a friend after such a short period of time. When Bella caught him spying on her, she smiled impishly and blushed a dazzling shade of red, "Ugh, do you mind checking this over for me, Bella? I've got a bit of a bum eye." The man she'd so kindly helped asked, holding the clipboard out to her.

She took it from him carefully and scanned over the information, her eyes zeroing in on his name; Emmett McCarty.

She nodded her head in confirmation and handed him back the sheets of paper before turning back to a livid Edward.

"Who's _that_?" Edward sneered, grabbing Bella's arm and dragging her slightly away from the burly man.

"Oh, that's Emmett. We met in the park before and-"

She was abruptly cut off by Edward near screeching, "You've only just met him?!"

Bella's eyes widened in shock as she reeled away from an incensed Edward. What had she done wrong?

Without heed, Edward latched his arm around Bella's forearm and dragged her along beside him to his car, buckling her in securely as she thrashed about beneath him.

"Let me go!" She bellowed, but to no avail. Eventually, she calmed down enough and Edward was just pulling out of his parking space when Bella noticed Emmett standing outside the reception, his eyes squinting against the dark.

A sniffle sounded from Bella and Edward quickly turned to face her, placing his hands on either side of her face once his car was parked hurriedly on the sidewalk outside their respective homes, "Listen to me." He ordered calmly, waiting for her to avert her eyes to him. When she did, he smiled and she mimicked his actions, wiping away her tears.

"What's wrong?"

"It's just; I thought I'd finally met someone for myself. Alice's parents are close to mine and whenever they visited Alice would always come along, so we sort of _had_ to get along. Rosalie is my boss, and although she's loyal and true, she can be a little bitchy at times, and, truthfully, we wouldn't be friends if it weren't for the café…" She trailed off, blushing when she realised she'd been babbling.

"You have me."

Bella didn't comment, she was too embarrassed by his forwardness. "Where's my mom?" She asked, bewildered.

"I sort of abandoned them at the supermarket. When you called, I was dashing for my car. Renee and Phil didn't even have the chance to look up." Edward chuckled, mortified by his earlier words. What was he thinking?

"Right, well thanks for picking me up." Bella mumbled, wrenching open her car door and slowly peeling herself out.

"Wait." Edward said, placing his hand over her own to halt her movements. She froze, frowning slightly. "Would you like to do something sometime?"

"With whom?" Bella enquired, cocking her head to one side in befuddlement.

Edward chuckled nervously, raking a hand through his unruly hair, "With me, of course."

"Oh, umm, sure." Bella blushed a beetroot red, averting her eyes to his hand still perched above her own. She skittered away from his grasp and climbed out of the car, smiling at him politely before turning on her heel and near sprinting for her bedroom.

Edward chuckled at her awkwardness and watched as her peachy ass swayed all of the way to her doorway, where she waved coyly before disappearing inside.


	7. Chapter 7

**Where your page meets mine**

**Disclaimer- Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing). Instead, it just borrows the Twilight character for recreational purposes.**

**A/N- Somebody asked where Madeline was. Well, as mentioned in previous chapters, she was taken into custody and was residing with a foster family until Edward was decided to be the legal carer for Maddie. I think it was towards the end of chapter 4, but don't take my word for it. Thanks for asking, questions help me fill in the gaps I'm missing, so continue to ask.**

**Thank you to everyone who has favourited/followed or reviewed this fanfic, it means a lot. Someone mentioned being rec'd on Facebook. I'm still new to all of this, so does someone want to be as kind to explain to me what that means? Obviously I know what Facebook is. Lol;) **

* * *

**Chapter 7:**

Bella was cooped up in the small confines of her bedroom, the curtains flailing wildly around her head due to the slight breeze drifting in through her ajar window. She was madly ashamed of her behaviour, her escapades caused her mother to break down in hysterical tears for the remainder of the day and Bella was mortified. Her mother was only worried about her protection and yet she continued to throw it back in her face whenever she got the chance. Renee didn't understand what it was like on Bella's behalf though, she had no idea what was drifting through Bella's mind when these supposed 'lapses' occurred.

The faint smell of tobacco hit Bella's senses like a whirlwind, making her gag like a cat with a hairball stuck in its constricted throat. Near heaving, Bella stumbled out of her bed and peered out of her window where a near evaporating cloud of smoke was floundering above the slated roof, leading like a gently falling slope to the garden, underneath it was the kitchen. Bella usually would lay on it -without her parents knowledge, of course- and gaze at the stars. She'd never fell before, so she didn't take any heed when throwing her legs over the window ledge and hauling the rest of her weight onto the slick tiles.

The sight of Edward adjacent to her with a cigarette hanging loosely between his tight lips, one of his hands stuffed deep inside his navy blue pyjama bottoms and his bare chest visible under the full moon -shirtless once again- was a display Bella was sure not to forget all too quickly. Although she knew deep down that smoking was a sordid habit that tainted your teeth and fingernails a revolting yellow, tarnished your insides with its poison and resulted in a malodours smell emitting from your mouth, Edward sure knew how to make it look somewhat gratifying and... sexy.

Cue blush.

Huffing, Bella crouched down before falling completely on her butt, groaning audibly as Edward's head flicked in her direction, eyes wide.

"You scared the shit out of me." He admitted solemnly, taking another drag of his cigarette, "Must you always do that?"

"You smoke?" She enquired, ignoring his previous statement and giving his lean body a once over. He, also on his slated roof, was giving her a _are-you-really-that-blind_ look, which resulted in her blush deepening.

"How'd you figure, Sherlock?" He retorted, smirking.

"That's a disgusting habit." She sneered, her lips turning up into a grimace.

He seemed pleased with her assessment and blew out the remaining smoke in his system, guiding it deliberately in her general direction, "I know."

"So why'd you do it?" Bella questioned, cocking her head to one side in bewilderment.

He shrugged lightly, averting his eyes to the ground. "Relieves stress. Makes me forget."

"Forget about what exactly?"

"Everything." He said nonchalantly.

"Everything?"

"Yeah, money, work, Maddie... Heidi."

"You love her, right?"

"Is it that obvious." He snickered, directing his gaze to the stars. Bella followed his line of vision and gasped, extolling the clear night sky, with only a few wispy clouds dotted about, and the stars intense and brilliant.

"I just don't understand why you're doing this." Bella called out after a few moments, laying herself down on the frozen slates and resting a bent arm underneath her head.

"Doing what?" Edward asked, extinguishing his cigarette on the slates before mimicking Bella's body language, but with both arms protecting his head of shaggy hair.

"Adopting her. I mean, it's got to be tough. She's a baby for crying out loud. You're not even her biological father!"

"I don't know. I guess she's just so... loveable. I can't let a stranger have her, no way. You've read those books, the ones were there's an abusive father and a mother who doesn't give a flying fuck." He trailed off, pinching the bridge of his nose between his forefinger and thumb and trying with all of his might to regulate his breathing rate.

"I suppose I see your thought process, but doesn't she have a father or something? Madeline's as much his as she is Heidi's, shouldn't he be the liable father? After all, it's feasible."

"No, she wouldn't tell us who it was. Said he didn't want anything to do with her or the baby."

"That's horrible." Bella mumbled, her eyebrows furrowing in concern. How could a father put his child through such an horrific experience? It wasn't morally right, and Bella could see that clearly. Full of undisguised repugnance and ferocity, Bella swiftly rose to her feet and began retreating to her window.

"Where're you going?" Edward catechised, bringing himself to his elbows.

Bella froze at the sound of his voice before spinning round on her heel, "I've gotta go. I'll speak to you tomorrow?" It sounded a great deal like a question, so Edward just nodded his head, observing her as she ambled towards her bedroom window. If he'd of blinked, he would have missed her slip on a slack slate, tumbling forwards onto her hands and knees. Without hesitation, he was on his feet, disregarding the fact that he didn't posses supernatural powers and wasn't able to jump from his house to hers in time to assist her to her feet.

"Shit." Bella mumbled, dusting off her marred hands on the skintight jeans that adorned her legs. She steadily guided herself to her unsteady feet and blushed timidly, resting a hand on the window ledge for support.

Edward chuckled at her misfortune, and seeing her throw him a death glare, threw his hands up in surrender, "Hey, don't be throwing those daggers at me. It wasn't my fault that _you_ fell."

"It wasn't-" But before she could finish, a resounding knock sounded at Bella's bedroom door.

"You open this door right this second, Isabella." Renee's voice echoed in the hall outside Bella's bedroom, Edward could almost envision her flaring nostrils and slanted eyes.

"Double shit." Bella breathed, launching herself over her window ledge and throwing back the curtains, sending him a scowl whilst doing so, before disappearing entirely. Edward shook his head in mystification, chuckling softly to himself before focusing his attention on the clear night sky again. Although Bella's window was left ajar from her hasty departure, he sure as hell wasn't eavesdropping on their conversation.

* * *

Bella paced back and forth within her bedroom. She felt like a caged animal, ready to strike upon being released. Trying to dwindle her fowl mood, she peeled open her curtains to let more light in, and stood studying the outline of the trees near the rear of the garden. She couldn't help her eyes from wandering to Edward's slated roof where they'd conversed only a couple of nights ago.

She sighed, snatching up the phone she'd threw across the room in her wrathful rage a few minutes ago, and, for the third time this morning, she dialled his number. She'd found it in the white pages, which held a list of contact details for people who resided in Washington. When she'd lost all hope that he wasn't in it, her eyes skimmed over his name.

Perching herself on the crisp covers of her bed, she began staring at the protruding numbers on the screen for awhile before finally gaining the courage to press the call button. With shaky hands, she pressed the phone to her ear and waited patiently for him to answer.

"Hello?" The deep male voice called down the receiver. Bella let out a sigh of relief, closing her eyes to relish in the feeling of her sudden boldness.

"Emmett." She breathed, her eyes squinting further and her lips slightly parted.

"May I ask whose calling me?" He probed, perplexed.

She giggled despite herself and raked a hand through her hair, yawning, "It's Bella. Bella Swan? We met at the park a couple of days ago."

"Oh," Emmett mumbled, for which Bella bit her lip at. Maybe she'd misinterpreted his signals. "I was wondering when I'd hear from you again. Is something wrong?"

Bella sighed, relieved and chuckled at his unneeded concern, "I'm fine, Emmett. Listen, I was wondering if we could meet up again soon in the near future."

"It's a date. You just name the time and place and I'll be there."

"That's great, Emmett. Although, I'd prefer it if we kept our relationship status as just friends." Bella smiled down the receiver, gnawing on her tarnished lower lip. Emmett began belting with laughter, unable to control the racks that shook his body. "How's things with the Mrs?"

Emmett sighed theatrically, his earlier mood leaving him almost instantly, and Bella immediately felt wretched for ever mentioning her, "She came over last night and threw a tantrum, proclaimed her undying love for me, cried and stormed out. It wasn't pretty."

"Aww, it will get better, Emmett, I promise."

"Do you wanna know what the worst part is?" Emmett enquired rhetorically. Bella could almost visualise the goofy grin and the matching dimples plotted on his face. "She took Mittens; our cat."


	8. Chapter 8

**Where your page meets mine**

**Disclaimer- Unfortunately, my mind is not creative enough to come up with the masterpiece that is Twilight (and partially don't want to miss a thing). Instead, it just borrows the Twilight characters for recreational purposes.**

**A/N- This chapter has been split into two parts as it would be too long to post as one chapter. I know the gist of what's going to happen in the next chapter, but I have yet to write it up. So, any suggestions? Also, I won't be updating this oncoming weekend as I am away with the family for my younger brother's birthday, but I promise that I'll update the weekend after. **

**On a side note, is anyone going to see the catching fire movie in cinemas? I know it's completely unrelated to this fandom, but I've just booked my tickets for the double bill. ;)**

* * *

**Chapter 8:**

Inside the club, dry-ice smoke cast a captivating atmosphere over the compact space, where hips swayed and bare skin slapped against one another. Coloured lights played blues and acid greens, hot pinks and butterscotch yellows over the dance floor, illuminating droplets of sweat as they trickled down the sticky dance participants necks, resulting in their hair clinging to their skin. Bella and Alice were currently in the bathroom the club provided, readjusting one another's hair and makeup.

Bella fidgeted and contorted the stunning, skin-tight dress that clung to her figure perfectly. It was a low hanging, strapless, black number that sheathed her to midway her thighs. It flattered her figure, enhanced her generous breasts, and the black heels expertly added to her lack of height.

"Hold still." Alice complained, tilting Bella's head to give her a better angle to apply a blood-red lipstick to her puckered lips. Bella sighed, dusting the looming creases out of her dress and smacked her lips together under Alice's command and watchful eye. "Perfect." Alice trilled, leaning her head back to admire her handiwork of Bella's made-up face and curled hair. After flicking a strand of hair out of Bella's face, Alice grabbed her purse off of the bathrooms vanity counter and bounded to the door in her emerald-green assemble. They both looked stunning.

They both emerged from the bathroom, linking arms and giggling profusely. Bella had been trying, somewhat successfully, to conquer her conquest of walking without tripping or face planting the floor in her unbelievably high heels. Alice could be persuasive when she chose to be, and Bella could not deny the effect of her besotting green eyes and pouted lips. They reminded her of the cat off of Shrek. When Bella had informed Alice of her discovery in the bathroom facility, they were both emerged in fits of giggles and all eyes were trained on them as they withdrew from the bathroom.

Bella immediately halted her laughter and blushed a furious red, averting her eyes to the ground in attempt to resist the temptation to glare at each and every person that caught her eye.

"Finally ladies," Emmett bellowed once they took their seats with him, Bella next to him and Alice facing Bella from the opposite side of the cushioned booth, partially concealed from preying eyes, "I thought you were never going to come back out. I was debating whether to just abandon you."

Bella scoffed and gently pushed his arm, for which he didn't move an inch, and took a tentative sip of her tequila. They'd been downing shots and sipping varieties of concoctions of various alcohols all night long. Alice rolled her bright eyes, leaning forward eagerly. "So, when did you guys meet?" Alice smirked, winking at Bella.

When Bella didn't make a move to answer her question, Emmett was quick to reply, "Bella here helped me out with a few mishaps, which are all in the past by the way." He nudged Bella gently on the shoulder and she smiled up at him.

"That's great, Emmett. So have you finally worked things out between the two of you?"

"Not quite, but were getting somewhere. We're on solid ground, at least." He sighed, ruffling his short black hair, "She apologised again a couple of days ago, and she also failed to mention that she's back with the guy. But at least one of us is happy. We're still on good terms." He continued, muttering under his breath, "Sort of."

* * *

Bella examined the slip of paper laid neatly on the sticky table and smiled to herself. In a scruffy scrawl was the boy she'd been dancing with for the past half-hours name and cell number. She gently took a sip of her tequila and tucked the note securely into her clutch bag. Emmett was currently dancing the night away with a blonde bombshell on the dance floor. At least he was taking his mind off of his bitch of an ex, Bella thought venomously.

"Whatcha got there?" Alice enquired, her fingers latching around Bella's red clutch bag and yanking it open, half of the contents pouring out.

"Nothing –it's nothing!" Bella called out over the blaring music, leaning over the table to retrieve her belongings. Alice's face beamed as she held up the small sheet of paper.

"Nothing, eh?" Alice smirked, her quick reflexes preventing Bella from grabbing her wrist and removing note from her grasp. Alice threw the note at Bella's disgruntled face and chuckled softly, leaning forward in anticipation, "Is that the guy you were getting cosy with earlier?" Bella just nodded her head numbly, her cheeks blazing.

"Mind if I interrupt, ladies?" A male, southern accent sounded besides the girls. Jasper was leaning on his elbows at the side of the booth closest to Alice. Edward was stood awkwardly behind him, scratching the back of his head nervously.

"J-Jasper?" Alice stuttered, which caused Bella to raise a recently plucked eyebrow –courtesy of Alice. Alice _never_, under any circumstances, stammered.

"Hey, Alice. I'm sorry I didn't get the chance to call you, I-"

"Save your apologies for someone who gives a flying fuck." Alice sneered. She snatched her purse off of the sticky surface of the table, downed the remainder of her tequila and, unsteady on her feet, stumbled towards the exit with ferocity emitting from her like waves of radiation, willing to kill anything, and anyone, who crossed her path.

"Sorry about her, Jasper. I thought she'd be more forgiving, but I guess not. She's always been the one to hold a grudge. I should have foreseen this happening." Bella plastered a false smile on her face and scratched the back of her neck nervously. Yanking her hand back when she realised that Alice would kill her if she messed her hair.

"It's okay, I guess I knew that she'd be mad. It's my-"

"It's no fault of your own, Jasper. If anything, it's my fault. I planned the whole thing, after all." Bella overruled him, dejecting his protests.

"Hey, don't blame yourself, Bella. You weren't the only one involved; _I _was the one that got Jasper here." Edward protested, speaking for the first time.

Bella smiled impishly at him, averting her gaze from him after a couple of seconds and gazing at the dance floor to distract herself somewhat.

It had been a few weeks ago when she first planned the whole escapade, just after Alice's first meeting with Jasper. She'd benignly asked Edward if he could delay Jasper's impending phone call and it was vital that Jasper knew of her plan, otherwise he would have called Alice immediately, or so he says. Jasper had always been socially awkward, when Bella had enquired as to why he was as such, Edward had just shook his head and revved his car engine before driving off to pick Jasper up, leaving Bella astounded on the sidewalk out front of her house. Alice had arrived shortly after, with raised eyebrows and all, asking why Bella initiated the whole 'night out'. Bella improvised, saying that she wanted Alice to meet someone. Only after that did Bella realise her mistake. She'd hastily called Emmett whilst Alice was dressing and asked for a favour. He was quick to oblige and chaperoned them to the club without hesitation, proclaiming that he needed to get out of his parents place before he mentally combusted. Of course, Emmett didn't know of her plan.

"Are these two men bothering you, Bella?" Emmett snarled, appearing out of nowhere. The girl he'd been dancing with previously was stood alone on the dance floor, shooting daggers at his back. Emmett, meanwhile was eyeing the men with slanted eyes and barred fists, the flesh pulling taunt over his muscles as his jaw bone rolled threateningly.

"No, Emmett, these are friends of mine." Bella informed him, watching with fearful eyes as the pieces fit together in Edwards mind. He'd met Emmett once before.

His eyes widened slightly before narrowing to slits, aiming them at Bella. She gulped, climbing to her feet to stand besides Emmett. Edward seemed to be hissing something at her, but she couldn't hear him over the booming music.

"You're not my father, Edward." Bella sighed eventually, holding onto Emmett's bicep for support.

"I don't give a shit, Bella. You're my friend and I'm not just going to allow you to associate yourself with a stranger." Edward spat, grabbing her free hand to pull her to his chest protectively.

"He's not a stranger." Bella protested, trying with all of her might to yank her wrist free.

If Bella had of blinked, she would have missed Emmett's fist being raised and connected with Edward's face, sending her scattering onto the floor, as she was previously tucked safely into Edward's arms, and Edward sprawled out on the floor, blood oozing from his nose.

"You stupid bastard." He spat in shock, wiping the blood away on the back of his hand. He climbed to his feet, rugby tackling Emmett around his waist to the floor. His head banging against the hardwood floor resounded throughout the club. By now, people were crowding around to witness the fight as Edward repeatedly punched Emmett in the face. Emmett, having enough, rolled the pair of them over, sending punches all over Edward's bloody and bruised face. Edward's eyes were somehow drunken and ever so slightly drooping, even though he hadn't touched a single drop of alcohol all night long.

"Stop!" I screeched at the top of my lungs, stepping forward to grab Emmett's arm. Everything seemed to go in slow motion, like in the movies as Emmett's fist connected with my face, sending me flying backwards to Jasper's feet.


End file.
